Q: You have to have tremendous respect for Graham Rahal. He could have easily pulled rank and ensured that he would be in the 500, but he chose not to do that. I don’t know the man, but I do have newfound respect for him. Not many people would have done that.
In another vein, we also must appreciate the efforts of Katherine Legge as the quickest of the RLL cars. With 10 years out of IndyCar, that was a major effort. However, it is curious that RLL just didn’t have the raw speed. With all of the legal aero bits, did they just choose a combination with limited effectiveness?
I’m guessing that the 500 winner will come from Ganassi or Arrow McLaren. Penske and Andretti will slot in behind those two. What do you think?
Don Hopings, Cathedral City, CA
MP: Graham mentioned he tried running Kat’s exact setup and his car was still 2mph slower, so it wasn’t a case of trying the wrong combo. Palou’s been a beast at Indy since he arrived in IndyCar. I never expect the pole winner to win the race, so if I’m wrong, he strikes me as the readiest to become a first-time winner. Rossi is sneaky good. McLaughlin is right there. I could go on for days…
Q: For both Callum Illott (and seemingly Graham Rahal), what was missed by their teams that their chassis produced such ill-driving cars? What do teams do in the post mortem on chassis in circumstances like these? Fix or junk them?
Gordon, Dallas
MP: They wish they knew. They’ll check for anything that might be cracked, flexing, or binding. These are massively expensive cars, so they aren’t going to be tossed in the dumpster.
Q: It is sad to see Graham miss the 500, 30 years after his father suffered the same fate.
RLL built a new headquarters/shop, hired new technical support, but seem to have worse-performing cars than previous years. Graham mentioned he isn’t happy running around 27th every week. Both Graham and Harvey’s contracts are up at the end of the year, but I don’t see any competitive open seats in IndyCar. CGR may have an open seat, but I don’t see either Graham or Jack in the running for that. Could Graham look to move to a GTP seat? Not likely, in my opinion. I believe he has done a lot on the management side at RLL, with sponsor deals. While it may be unlikely that he leaves RLL, I can see that the team needs a major shake-up on the technical side, with may include buying some new Dallara chassis.
Frank, Mooresville, NC
MP: Graham isn’t lacking for options. Jack isn’t as fortunate. They don’t need new cars. Just need a better plan to find the speed they’re capable of making.
Q: We’ve seen the same thing for the last few years with Penske at Indy. They look promising during practice, but when the boost is added for qualifying, they don’t factor. This year is even a step further back – now Penske is the fourth-fastest Chevy team, behind even Foyt. Will engineering heads roll?
Bruce, Philadelphia
MP: Let’s talk next week after the race. If the cars are underwhelming there, I’d imagine some tough conversations will be had as they look to the offseason.
Q: Do you know if Graham Rahal’s team considered taking another last-minute run ahead of Jack Harvey? My thinking is that if Graham had beaten the No. 30 to the line with four minutes left, withdrawn his time and attempted a run, whatever time he posted would have stood, even if it was a 225. Harvey didn’t have a time posted at that point in the proceedings, or if he did, it was whatever the result was of Jack’s 170mph engine cooling laps. Taking another run leading up to the gun would have locked Graham into the field.
I understand that the No. 15 might not wanted to have played that game against a teammate, but if it was Sting Ray Robb that was in the mix, that seems like it would have definitely been the play. This might be a loophole that IndyCar needs to close in future years, especially if Harvey was sitting at “no time posted” in the final minutes.
Mark Founds, Mason, OH
MP: I don’t believe Graham and the 15 team felt there was anything left to find by venturing out, and doing so simply to block Jack from making an attempt might have seen IndyCar intervene.
Q: Sorry, two questions.
1) It seems to me that the Bowtie has the edge in horsepower this year. I say that despite Alex Palou winning the pole. Chevrolet had 10 of the top 15, with Ganassi really the only Honda runner with pace to win the race. Is the vibe around the garage that Chevy has that edge? And what is Ganassi doing different than every other Honda team other than perhaps having the best drivers?
2) I am most assuredly in the minority here and I am old enough to know the sacred traditions, but with the economics of motor racing these days, I really hate seeing one individual twist in the wind for qualifying — especially an individual and team that commits to a full season and brings a lot to the series. That team spends a lot of money to be on the grid all year. I am not saying lock in regulars into the Indy 500 vs. the one-offs (like IRL days), but when there are only 34 cars, it seems just not right to only start the sacred 33.
Back in the day when 40+ cars showed up… I get it. But now, we are lucky if a 34th entry shows up. Maybe create a guideline before season that everyone knows that if there are 36+ entries, we have traditional knock-out qualifying. Less than that, you are in the show provided you can do minimum speed. RLL brought four cars to the show and three full-time. My point I guess is there is an economic racing reality with sponsors etc., and the amount of money and effort it takes to commit multiple full-time cars… against there is, at best, one extra car (if that) every year. Thoughts?
Jeff Smith, State College, PA
MP: The feeling is definitely of Team Chevy having raised its Indy 500 game. Ganassi’s been the best Honda team for a few years, and were dominant last year, so this is a continuation of their recent performance. Sadly, they don’t tell me what they’re doing that’s better than the others.
So bumping is OK if it’s 35, but not 34? Teams have equal opportunities to take part in the race. It’s their job to ensure they do, and if they don’t, there are harsh consequences like in most other sports where a minimum threshold must be met to keep playing on in the race or playoffs.